Howdy All! I am in a frenzy as I get ready for my trip for work to Prescott Arizona via Phoenix. I understand that it will be "Africa Hot" there.

I will, therefore be away starting Monday. Someone keep an eye on Wyatt for me.

A Quick Plug!

Okay, I've stopped laughing for a minute.

Read JT's latest post. It's the funniest post I've read in a while.

http://jtsplace.wordpress.com/2006/06/20/under-the-house-part-1/

Playoff Pool Winners - The Diatribe!!

Congratulations to the Carolina Hurricanes for winning the Stanley Cup last night. It was a GREAT series. The playoffs this year have been exciting and worth the watch. As July 1st rolls around, watch as the BIG market teams (Philadelphia, New York, Detroit, Colorado, Dallas, Ottawa, Toronto) scramble at Free Agency to get smaller and faster.
If you haven’t been watching. . . .For Shame! Last night’s game was at such a great pace that every whistle was followed be a commercial because the play just never stopped. The game clock was running off 5-7 minutes between whistles at times.

But enough about the NHL. . . . .

It’s time for the results of the Deathlok (Fotiu) Playoff Pool results (the hockey elite know Deathlok as Fotiu, of Nick Fotiu fame). A few explanations will be required along the way to help the non-hockey bloggers.

Thanks to everyone for their participation this year (although I am still light one applicant. . . a first in playoff history). Please take care of that, will you. We were down in attendance this year and I blame the lockout for that. However, 128 pools is nothing to sneeze at. Again, thank you all for playing . . .tell your friends.

First, the coveted Tom Palys Award goes to JJ55. Congratulations! The Palys Award is the return of the $5 entry fee for coming in last place. Over the years, it has actually become a treasured award (much like the Lady Byng). Although Badger was leading the race toward the Palys Award this year, sadly he tripped at the finish line (ala Dick Dastardly from the Wacky Races) and finished both 126th AND 127th of 128.

In third place, NUCE2 jockeyed back and forth with DANDUNN2, but the Hurricanes helped NUCE2 gain the two points he needed to keep DANDUNN2 at bay. I was 4th once, so my condolences DANDUNN2. Congratulations NUCE2.

In second place, THE FLEA! Although I don’t know who THE FLEA is, I understand that THE FLEA is a youngin’! The Playoff Commission will have to verify his eligibility for the prize before it is sent out. (NOTE: All ineligible money goes to the Playoff Commission). This is an example of why you should think twice before letting your children enter the pool with you. You can’t live that down. Congratulation to THE FLEA!

Now. . . . . . . .

In first place, the winner of the 2006 Hockey Pool is PAIGEY!! PAIGEY had this thing wrapped up soon after Carolina went to the finals. With Carolina ranked 15th and Edmonton ranked other than 1 or 2 (9 in fact), PAIGEY clearly knows hockey (if you discount that Detroit ranking of 16). According to my records, this is PAIGEY’s first entry. Congratulations on the win.

Finally, thanks for popping by the blog to read the playoff report. Enjoy some of the other nonsense on here if you wish. One final time. . . .THANKS! I appreciate the participation and dedication to the playoff pool that has been making it a sought out event for over 10 years. Hope to see you all next year and hopefully there will be more faith in the Flyers ranking net year.

Drink Deep From This Cup!!

Tonight is the night!!!

The Stanley Cup Finals, seven games series has turned into the Superbowl. Two teams! One Game! All The Marbles!!

It’s gonna be a barnburner!!

If you have stopped watching hockey, start again. . . . .TONIGHT!

The playoffs have been exceptional this season. Unfortunately, with all the big market teams out of the race, there seems to be very little interest.

The games (in the later rounds) have been fast paced, hard hitting excitement.

Both teams have played great and either is deserving of the CUP. Raise it high!! Raise it proud!

8:00 can’t come quick enough. The Flyer’s may have packed it in (although they did sign Marty Murray again . . . . oy), this series is why I LOVE hockey.

LAME BARBER!

Calling all Wyatts!!

I just got a phone call that I don't even know where to begin with.

I have had the same guy cutting my lawn for 4 years. My brother, who lives across the street said that he got a guy that was cheaper. I said that I would rather stick with the guy that I knew. The new service was $20 (with a free 5th cut if you pay up front). My guy was $25. So I got my first bill (monthly) and I was charged $28 per cut. I was less than happy that the increase happened with anyone telling me. So, I fired him. He called and apologized for not informing me of the increase. Very professional.

In comes the new guy. I pay him $80. He does three cuts and then I don't hear from him. I called Thursday. . nothing. Friday. . . .nothing. I called today and reminded him that he was prepaid and owes me two cuts. I then also get some kids from the neighborhood to cut the lawn ($20). As they are cutting, The Lawn Barber calls. He tells me that he's been in the hospital with a concussion. He just got my last message (which was polite and professional) about my prepaid service. . ."Well, you don't have a contract. Mow your own lawn asshole!"

I informed "The Lawn Barber" (I don't want to use Jon De Meo's name. . . ooops!) that I have his address and he says "Do what you have to do!"

So it looks like a trip to small claims is in order.

Wyatt, an chance this guy is mob related??

I'm wondering how I turned out to be the bad guy here!!

Things I HATE about Comic Books today!

As I've said previously, I have been collecting comics since 1975. . . .Over 30 Years! When I started, it was a deep dark secret because the other kids would kick your ass. Now, it's no big deal. . . .at least not if you aren't old like me.

Anyway, one of the guys that I used to buy my books from once told me, "There are no bad character's, just bad writers. From what I've seen, I agree with that. I've seen people like Todd McFarlane take a lame villain like Chameleon and make him really neat. On the other hand there is the following. . . . . . .

The following list are things that are so horrible that they make me want to stop collecting comics. The rule for this hatred (as if I need one) is simple. If you change something that you can't change back without doing something stupid like reboot the Universe. It better not be stupid.

1. The Ultimate Universe character changes - A few years ago, Marvel introduced a NEW universe. . .The Ultimate Universe. My description of the Ultimate Universe is "A really bad idea done REALLY well. They took the top writer and artist talents and basically revamped the Marvel Superheroes. Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, The Ultimates (which is the Avengers) and the X-Men. There are other book that are limited in there run, but these are the main for books. They are all very well done books. . . .especially Spider-Man. The problem is this. From a comic enthusiast (geek) it is hard to sit around a discuss a character because there are three or four of each character now. There is single Spider-Man and married Spider-Man. In the X-men, you have Colossus who has had a growing love thing with Shadowcat (Kitty from the movie) for years. Over in the Ultimate X-Men, Colossus is gay. WHAT? Northstar is gay in both books and I don't care. It's the inconsistencey that makes it crappy. Nick Fury. . .Hard as nails white guy with a patch on his eye, greying temples, smokes a cigar, been around since the 40s. In the Ultimates, he's a bald black guy that looks like Samuel L. Jackson (IT'LL GET YOU DRUNK!!)

2. What unleashed this topic? Today, the New Civil War comic came out (Spoiler Alert) and Spider-Man reveals that he is Peter Parker. OUCH! You cannot recover from that. The armor costume was bad but fixable. This! That's worse that the costume and Spider-Man joining the Avengers combined. I hope Mark Millar develops rectal warts on his tongue.

3. The REAL origin of Wolverine - AGAIN, Wolverine is character who is based in the fact that he doesn't remember his past. If you change that, you change the whole character. I don't even know what the story is about because I refuse to buy it.

More later

Congratulations Chief!

Congratulations to the new head of the Philadelphia Phantoms. . . . .Craig "Chief" Berube!

Well done!!

This should make the Phantoms season an exciting one.

Who Would I Be??

I apparently got a meme. . .and I don't even know what that is. I've looked into it and I think there is conflicting information on what I'm supposed to be answering.

According to Little Miss Chatterbox, the question is "What Sitcom (although I think TV in general) character would you be when/if you grew up. When tagged by Wyatt, the question became "What character would you WANT to be. . . . ."

As for who I WOULD be HOUSE. I've only heard "He reminds me of you!" a dozen times or more. Knowledgeable, a general dislike for people.

As for who I would WANT to be:

I would have to go with Al Swearengen:

How Great is this guy? Hard as nails! Extremely powerful! This guy would give Jack Bauer and Vic Macke a run for their money.

So, there you have it. I will pass the baton to grimjack , zippychik , and radio gnome.

Movie Review!

Okay, have you ever watched a movie that you liked and just weren't sure that you could recommend it. This is one of those movies.

Mirrormask is a movie by Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean. Neil is known for his comicbook writing, most notably DC's Sandman. However, he also has several novels. He recently wrote a young readers book called Coraline (which was excellent) and two children's books "The Wolves In the Walls and The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish. My son likes both of those as well.

Mirrormask is by far the weirdest movie that I have seen in a long time. It would probably be excellent if you were stoned. The only way that I can describe it is a mixture of his Coraline book and the movie Return to Oz.

It's PG, but my son and my nephew were asleep within a half hour (or it caused them to have a seizure).

I got it on Netflix. I recommend the movie if you are up for something that is VERY odd and very different.

And She Stays? - Part 2 - Electric Boogaloo

In a follow-up report on the last post. The hockey table is still in the basement. It has been moved in between the the inset shelves.

Okay, here goes. . . .

As you can see the table offsets the luxurious shelving created by yours truly with the help of the 'puter implanted in my head. Note the box of unopened figures needed a place to live and thus the opposite wall is shaping up to look similar. . . .but longer shelves.

Across the room, centering the two new hockey shelves is the display of horror. Some would say this whole basement is a display of horror and others still would describe my marriage as such. When my daughter was younger, a friend of hers stayed over and they wanted to sleep in the basement. My daughter was showing her around. When she got to this display, she reached into Leatherface's bucket and said "Look, there's a bloody head in here!". . . . .They slept upstairs.

The wall between the hockey wall of fame (surprisingly without Keith Tkachuk or Cliff Ronning) is the "Everything else shelf. Filled with the Justice League, Alien, Iron Man, Fantastic Four and a veritable plethora of other things, this was supposed to be the bar. . . .. Oops!Moving to the far end of the basement, we have the Spider-Man/Batman setup. Amassing the collection of collections, this (as I now look at it) has grow a little since the picture was taken. Note to the right of the picture, the Spidey phone. I actually brought this into work when I worked for the Navy and replaced my desk phone with it. Needless to say, I had a hard time getting promoted and have left for other Governmental endeavors. Out of the picture to the right is a collection of X-Men figures, which is attached to the wall of the BIG comic book wall. . .. but that's a story for another time.

And She Stays?

When it comes to my wife, It's not a big surprise that I stick around. The BIG question is why does she?

For Your Consideration:
I was sitting at the breakfast table one day, eating my Quisp or BooBerry or something. As I stared at the table, it suddenly dawned on me that the table was more or less shaped like a hockey rink. Hmmmmmmm. . . . . . . So I got to work.

Later, my wife comes home from work. She says "Oh Good! You cleaned the kitchen floor. . . . .where's the table?" I took her into the basement. Right here:

"Isn't that Awesome!"!

She just turned around and went back upstairs. . . . . . . .At least the floor was clean.

Moon Over Philadelphia

Deathlok Spotlight – Moon

Moon, or Tom Mooney, is my Father-In-Law. Tomorrow he goes in for his second open heart surgery. His first was 13 years ago. 5 bypasses later, he was as good as, if not better than, new. This year, at 78, it was discovered that he needs to go in for a triple bypass. So as my wife and I plan to take him in and wait for the good news tomorrow, it seemed a good time to, not only reflect on Moon, but to share the life of someone who is, in my opinion, extraordinary. Don’t get me wrong, this guy is a pain in the ass. It’s one of the many qualities that he and I share an I love him like my own Dad.

Keep in mind that most of his life is kept to himself and unless you get him at the right time and in the right mood, you may never learn anything about this guy’s life. . .which is incredible.

When Moon was a little kid, his Father died and his Mom got remarried. The problem was that her new husband wanted her and not her children. So, off to the orphanage went the kids. I know he has a brother and a half brother. Recently, he found out that he had other half-siblings that he never knew about. Can you imagine? Anyway, eventually all the kids got placed in homes, except for Moon. He grew up in the orphanage until he was 16, at which time he had to leave.

One of his best friends was my wife’s uncle. He was around a lot and eventually moved in with them. . . .a family of 10-12 kids. . .I lost count. Anyway, being employed, he was the coolest thing ever to that family. Considering that 1 or 2 of my Mother-in-Law’s family completed their high school education, having a job (and money) was a foreign concept.

Moon went into the Navy and served on the USS Ware (pictured). I found this out a few years ago and surprised him with a USS Ware hat for Christmas. He was impressed. A few weeks ago on a road trip, I learned that after the Navy, he joined the Merchant Marines. The stories this guy has are awesome. I could listen to this stuff for hours. He also told me that he was married before. He was married for about 90 days, and gave her half of everything because he was so in love with his friend’s sister, my Mother-in-Law. It turned out that my wife didn’t even know this. . .That went over well. As I said, you have to catch him at the right time.

Moon was a Philadelphia Policeman for a while, a driver for the Philadelphia Bulletin, owned a corner store and other jobs that I barely know about. He can fix anything as long as it’s not by conventional means. The trunk of his car puts Home Depot to shame. He will help anyone and everyone. Unfortunately, he’s not real good at accepting help in return.

One of the first experiences of this neurosis was when I moved into my “To Be” wife’s house. I mentioned that I was going to take the glass doors off the tub and put up a shower curtain. When I came home from work, it was done. We had to upgrade the outlets in the house. I was determined to replace more than him to show him that I wasn’t worthless. We finished about even. Unfortunately, I could feel my arms because I electrocuted myself three times. I showed him!!

Anyway, I don’t know what we would have done all these years without him, so please keep him in your thoughts tomorrow.

More On THe Convention

Wizard's Annual Comic Convention in Philadelphia is a great time. It's got something for everyone, both young and old.

For example, with comicbook icons becoming popular amongst the adult moviegoing community, characters like Batman, Superman and Spider-Man are there to please adults and bring a smile to the parents of the children attending the convention.

As for the children . . . .what child doesn want to go out and see a character from their favorite bedtime story?? My son was thrilled to see the children pleasing sights of bedtime story favorites Goldilocks and Little Red Riding Hood. Now granted, they are strictly there for the children. But the convention wasn't all about me!

This weekend was the Philadelphia Comic Convention. Besides the sales booths, artists and other general nonsense that goes on at the annual convention, this year Lord Vader himself was on hand to recruit new members in his fight against the Rebel Alliance.

Much to my surprise, my son filled out the necessary paperwork and was quickly accepted into the elite group known as "Vader's Hand".

As it turns out, Darth Vader had heard of Reilly's deeds that further the balance of the Force to the Dark Side. The recruiting was merely a formality.

Soon after being formally welcomed by Lord Vader himself, Reilly was given his Blaster and, to the fear and dismay of the rest of the Stormtroopers, Reilly
kicked Imperial ass and took names. The Storm Troopers have now been taken over by my son and they much report to Vader only through the newly appointed Darth Reilly.

The Force is strong with this one!

The Final Stage!!

Congratulations to the Carolina Hurricanes and the Edmonton Oilers for winning their respective Conferences. Monday night starts the Final Battle for the right to hoist Lord Stanley's Cup.

From what I have seen so far in the playoffs this year, these teams are both deserving and this round should be quite exiting to watch.